The Assassin's Song
by QueenOfKingston
Summary: Since she was old enough to walk, Melody Pond was trained and conditioned for one thing: to kill the Doctor. This is the account of her training, her torture, brainwashing, and captivity under the rein of Madame Kovarian. Rated T for violence and disturbing themes of abuse.
1. The First Regeneration

The white room was lit with white-hot lights. A giant machine stood at the center of the room, several chords streaming from its orfaces, all connecting to the body of a girl who could be no more than four. She had red, shoulder-length hair and wide grey eyes. Freckles dotted her plump cheeks, which were stained with tears as she trembled in fear.

Before her stood a man dressed in some sort of military-like uniform. He held a gun to the little girl, his face hard as stone as if he had no empathy for what he was about to do.

"Fire," Madame Kovarian said from behind a glass barrier separating the control room.

Without hesitation, the man fired a bullet straight into the little girl's heart.

Melody Pond screamed in agony, thrashing to get away from the chords but it was no use. The screaming only became louder and more shrilling as a gold light emitted from her body.

Kovarian's black lips slithered into a smile. "It's beginning. Run the tests!" she commanded as the men behind the controls worked feverishly.

Soon, the girl was completely embodied with sun-like light. She cried to no avail, but was soon quieted as she no longer felt the bullet wound, or saw the light. She looked at her hands, which looked a slightly darker shade than usual. She touched her face, which had completely transformed. She had brown hair and brown eyes now, and didn't look like she was much older. She looked at the poisonous woman behind the glass. Her prisoner. The woman who tortured her, but never had she gone to this extreme.

She wanted to study the regeneration process.

"Take her to her room. We will test her vitals tomorrow," Madame Kovarian said, as members of the Silence disconnected the chords and carried the surprisingly strong and struggling little girl to her room. More like a dungeon than a room, really.

* * *

"Heart rate slightly changed. Blood pressure higher than normal," one of the doctors on staff told Madame Kovarian as he examined the little girl. Melody Pond kept her cold eyes on the eye-patched lady.

"What's the matter, now then?" Madame Kovarian asked Melody mockingly. She didn't answer. "Oh, look at that, such hatred in such young eyes," Kovarian continued with a sadistic smile. "Isn't it just beautiful?"

Melody finally looked away from her,her fists clenched so tight that her knuckles were turning white.

Kovarian chuckled slightly, before turning to another henchman. "Alright, then. Let's test for changes in physical abilities."

Melody was brought to a gymnasium like structure. They removed her flat shoes and replaced them with tiny tennis shoes.

"Alright, miss, three laps around the track, on you go," one of the men said, nudging her to the start line as the man beside him brought out a timer.

Melody didn't budge.

"Well, off with you!" the man with the timer yelled.

She looked up at him, wiggling her nose in disgust. "NO!"

"Well then we can do this the hard way," another man said, bringing out his whip.

Melody let out a sharp gasp, shielding herself as he cracked the whip across her shoulder blade. She screamed, stumbling back. She looked up at him, baring her teeth like a savage. Then, she took off running around the track.

"Hmm, timing has improved," the man with the timer said as he clocked her on her third lap.

The Silence proceeded to do a number of tests. Testing her strength, speed, flexibility, and comparing them to her previous incarnation.

This was the life of Melody Pond everyday. The life of the woman who was trained and conditioned for one thing: to kill the Doctor.


	2. Escape

She ran. Faster than she had ever ran before. Her breaths became shorter and harder to push through her lungs as she ran through the alley ways. Melody coughed furiously, checking behind her to make sure they were not following her.

"Should we go after her?" a man asked as he watched the little girl running on the screen. The Silence hacked into the surveillance cameras placed around the main buildings.

"No. Let her run. The child is weak. She has nothing. No family, no money. She'll starve and suffer. Let her suffer," Madame Kovarian smiled, venom in her voice. "That will serve as punishment for running away."

Melody found the street. She held out her arms, feeling the sweet sensation of sunlight against her skin. She watched as the cars passed by, seeming to slow down as they got closer to her. She walked along the sidewalk with other people who stared at her oddly. She looked completely homeless. She was dressed in rags, her skin was dirty, her hair untamed. People moved away from her as she coughed, and she could hear mothers mumbling to their children to stay away so they wouldn't catch disease. Nethertheless, she continued exploring the city and enjoying her freedom.

Her stomach growled with hunger later that day. She eyed bakery shops and hot dog stands, wishing she could eat.

Her attention was stolen when a dog ran in front of her, crossing the street with oncoming traffic.

"No!" Melody screamed, jumping in front of the cars to save the dog from the cars. She ran fast, evading the cars that honked wildly in anger of the little girl. She crossed the street successfully, setting the dog down. "You could have been very hurt!" she scorned the dog.

"You could have been very hurt too, but thank you," the dog replied.

Melody gasped. "You can talk!"

"You understand me?" the dog replied.

"Y-yes... I..I don't know how. I've never spoken to the dog before. I guess I translate your language, too. I can speak to aliens, you see. I can speak languages that aren't my language without knowing I'm doing it," Melody explained.

"You are not human, then?" the dog asked.

"I am half human," Melody answered, coughing. "I was taken as a baby and I have been tortured by a group called the Silence since. I just escaped."

"I'm not sure I understand, but I am very sorry. You don't have a home, then?" the dog questioned.

"No, no I don't," Melody looked down sadly.

"I don't have a home either. I was abandoned as a puppy. I stay in a junkyard with a few other dogs. You can stay with us if you like," he offered.

"I would like that very much," Melody smiled, and the dog led her down an alley way into a junk yard.

The other dogs growled as the human approached, but the little dog quickly calmed them and explained what was going on in the best way that he could.

Melody found an old car. She opened the door, laying in the car seat. It wasn't the most comfortable thing she had lay in, but the Silence didn't own it and that's all that mattered. The seven year old curled up, thanking the little dog for his returned kindness.

"We will protect you," the little black dog promised, licking her face.

Melody nodded and smiled, coughing and petting her new friend.

* * *

Days passed and the little girl had yet to eat. Her cough was growing stronger, her body growing weaker. She wandered outside the junkyard at night, walking the alley ways. She coughed as she spotted a man rummaging through trash.

"Are you alright?" the man asked. "Little girl, are you okay?"

"It's alright. It's quite alright. I'm dying, but I can fix that. It's easy really, see," Melody said as the gold light released from her body. The man ran, but Melody paid no attention as she completely regenerated.


	3. Finding the Ponds

The streets of New York were busy that morning. Cars and taxis were barely moving, as apposed to the vibrant people on the street who moved in-and-out of shops like soldiers running behind enemy lines. Melody Pond seemed to be staring at an array of dresses from inside the shop, but her eyes were fixed on her reflection. She touched her face. Her skin was a soft brown, her eyes deeply chocolate. Her hair was down to her shoulders and very, very curly. She smiled at her face, but seemed dismayed by the rags she had been wearing. She glanced at the dresses, but only for a moment, before sauntering inside the shop.

"Excuse me?" little Melody walked up to the clerk. "Is there any way I could do some work in exchange for some new clothes?"

The lady looked down at her, puzzled. "I'm sorry, miss, but you are not old enough to work here. I'm sure if you ask your parents, they will be happy to buy something for you.." the clerk then noticed her attire, her lips parting as she noticed the look of disappointment on the little girl's face. "Miss, where are your parents?" she asked.

"I.. I don't know. I want to look for them, you see," Melody began, playing with the raggedy skirt she wore. "But I want to clean up for them first. I don't want to meet my parents wearing these."

The clerk put her hand over her heart. "One moment, miss," she said, rushing to the back. "Richie?" she called.

"Yes, Avery?" a man dressed nicely appeared, glancing over the counter at the little girl. "What is it?"

"This little girl, she's homeless. She doesn't know where her parents are. May I take my lunch break? So I can help her?" she asked. "At least let me get her somewhere safe."

The man twitched his mouth, seeming to chew it over before nodding.

"Thank you!" she said, grabbing her coat and clocking out. "What is your name, miss?" Avery asked, looking down at the child.

"Melody," she responded, eyeing her wearily.

"That is a beautiful name, Melody," she smiled. "I'm going to help you. My apartment is a couple of blocks away. Do you mind coming with me?"

Melody opened her mouth, rendered speechless of her kindness. "No..no I don't mind... thank you..." she finally answered, trying to smile but it came off as a twitch of her lips. She didn't smile often.

"Great!" Avery said, taking the little girl's hand and leading her out of the shop. "Alright, I am going to have to ask you a few questions," she told Melody, looking over at her to recieve some sort of approval. Melody nodded. "First of all, how did you end up alone? And where have you been staying?"

"I haven't been alone. I was kidnapped as a baby, you see," Melody explained, stopping in her tracks as Avery haulted, her eyes widening.

"Oh my goodness! That's a crime, Melody, I'll have to inform the police!" she gasped, shaking her head.. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" she asked, checking for bruises. "You escaped, I assume?"

"Yes, I got away," Melody answered. "And yes, they hurt me. All the time, ma'am. But please don't inform the police, I'm afraid the police won't stand a chance. Not against them."

The woman's eyes widened once more, then quickly narrowed. "Melody...who are these people? What do you mean, the_ police_ don't stand a chance?"

"I can't tell you, ma'am. You won't be safe," Melody refused, shaking her head. "Don't worry about them, please, just help me find my parents; that is all I want."

Avery looked down, then rose, continuing walking as her heart hammered in her chest. "I will find your parents, sweetie. I promise."

"Thank you," Melody hugged her, holding onto her as they walked through the streets.

Avery fumbled at her keys, opening the door to her apartment. "Chris?" she called, looking around.

"Avery? Is that you? What are you doing home so early?" a man appeared from the hallway. He looked at the little girl, stepping back a bit. "Um, honey..."

"I went on a lunch break, this is Melody. I know this is out-of-the-blue and I am so sorry, but she is in a very dire situation. We have to help her find her parents," Avery explained, her eyes pleading.

"So she's homeless?" Christopher asked, looking down at the little girl who helplessly stared up at him.

She nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Alright...she can stay here until we find her parents," he said, scratching the back of his head.

"Thank you, hun," Avery kissed her husband's cheek. "I will be home around four, take care of her."

Chris nodded, walking to the kitchen as his wife exited the building. "What was your name, again?" he asked, pulling a chair out and gesturing for her to sit.

"Melody," she said simply, sitting down across from him.

"Alright, Melody, do you know what your parents look like? Their names?"

"Their names are Amy and Rory. I have a picture of my mum. It's me and her, from when I was a baby. Before they took me," she said, rusteling through her jacket and showing him the picture.

His eyebrows raised slightly, noting that she must be of mixed race, which was very rare in the 1960's. "Your parents last names, what are they?" he asked.

"Pond, I think," she replied. "Yes, I do believe that's it. Rory and Amy Pond."

"Is there any other information you have that you think could help us find them?" he asked.

"I don't think so," she said simply.

"And how did you get seperated from your parents?" he asked.

"I was kidnapped," she replied.

His reaction was similar to his wife's, and a similar conversation occurred.

"Melody, these people, what race were they, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Mostly human," she replied.

Christopher dropped the picture. Obviously that wasn't the answer he was expecting. "What do you mean, _mostly_ human?"

Melody realized that at this stage, average people didn't know about aliens. "I mean... they were all human. But the things they did were very inhumane," she corrected herself quickly.

Chris released a sigh of relief, forming his own theory of what had happened. "Okay, I am going to do a bit of research. We have a bathroom, first door down that hallway, if you would like to clean up."

"Thank you, sir," Melody said, walking down the hallway to the bathroom.

The young man rubbed his forhead, looking down at the pictures and sighing. He walked over to a phonebook, flipping the page to search for "Ponds."

* * *

Avery walked through her apartment door, undoing her ponytail and allowing her blonde locks to cascade down her back. "Find anything?" she asked Chris as he peeked around the corner.

"No, not anything. She says her parents last names are Pond, but I didn't find a match with their first names," Chris said. "She's biracial, however, so I have my own theories as to what happened," he said in a low tone, as if not wanting her to hear.

"One of her parents is white?" she asked, almost frowning.

"Yes," he said, showing her the picture of Amelia. "She's very pretty. And awfullly young, about our age if not a little younger."

"Yes, she is. I imagine that she's not married to him. Not in this society. She must have a different last name. They probably aren't together anymore..." he said almost sadly. "Now you know I am for civil rights as much as you but the way she described being kidnapped makes me think this was a hate crime."

"What, you think the KKK could've done this?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"It would explain it. Her mother, Amy, could've been the daughter of one of their members. Daddy finds out his little girl is associating with that sort, daddy gets unhappy. They take Melody. Torture her like the freak they believe her to be," he reasoned.

"Why kidnap her? Why torture her? Why not just get rid of her like they normally would?" she asked.

"Why do they do anything they do? They are sick people, Avery, and you know that. And unfortunately this country is rampant with them. Finding her mom is going to be very difficult in general, but if this is really the case then I'm sorry to say it'll be impossible."

"We've got to do _something_, though, Chris. We've got to help her," Avery pleaded.

Chris took her hand, nodding. "I know. I'll do everything I can."

"Thank you," she said, smiling and kissing his forehead. She then rose, going to a small bedroom where Melody was talking to a small baby.

"Hello, Melody," Avery smiled. "You met my daughter, I see."

"Yes, she's quite talkative," Melody said, smiling. "And very smart."

"Well, I wouldn't say talkative, but she makes a lot of noises," Avery said, smiling. "Thank you, I play Mozart for her and try to get what I can to assist her learning."

_Oh, right,_ Melody remembered that normal humans couldn't speak baby.

"Come on, I've got a surprise for you!" Avery grabbed Melody's hand and helped her to her feet. "Chris, you don't mind watching Jane for a little longer, do you?"

"No, it's fine, honey, you run along," he smiled.

"Where are we going?" Melody asked.

"Shopping!" Avery responded happily. "We're going to get you out of those clothes!"

Melody gaped, still amazed. "You don't have to do that, ma'am."

"I know, but I want to," she said, holding Melody's hand tightly and smiling. "Besides, I can't WAIT to take Jane shopping when she's older. I guess it'll be like practice,"

Melody smiled. "Ma'am, you're the most... oh what's that word... kind...ues, that's it. You are the kindes person I have ever met. Really."

Avery looked at her sadly, frowning. "Well hopefully you will meet a lot of kind people," she hugged the little girl as they walked back into the main town.

"Yes...I hope there are more people like you out there, ma'am...I really do," Melody mumbled, smiling as she pictured what her mother must be like. This was the happiest she had ever been, and she hoped that after she found her parents that she could still stay in contact with these wonderful people.


	4. Break Her

**Author's Note: Okay, so I may be being a little contraversal with the racism thing, but this is in a time where people could be very brutal when it came to racism. So I apologize if that has offended anyone-it wasn't meant to!  
Thanks for reading!**

* * *

Gossip flourished the vicinity of New York where Avery and Christopher Cobb lived. 'Didn't you hear, the Cobbs took in a little mixed orphan,' the people had been saying for the past couple of weeks that Melody Pond had been staying with the nice couple. The young couple seemed to ignore it, more than happy to help the young girl.

They sat at dinner, talking about things that Melody had only recently gotten accustomed to such as family-type dinners and shopping. She was surprisingly charming despite the touch of social awkwardness due to her lack of exposure to a normal life. She smiled more easily now, brightly embracing the promise of a life away from the Silence. She still had nightmares every night, but Avery would come into her room and calm her. A beautiful bond had formed between the Cobbs and Melody in the short amount of time they had spent together, and she had never felt happier.

Melody bit into the turkey that Avery had made, her eyes widening. "I didn't know food could taste this good, ma'am!" she said, smiling at her.

"Haha thank you, you're very sweet," Avery replied, sipping her water.

"You're the one who's very sweet, ma'am," Melody replied. "I cannot thank you enough for everything you've done."

Avery leaned over, patting her shoulder. "You are welcome, sweetheart," she told her with a smile. "Now take your elbows off the table," she teased, giggling slightly.

Melody laughed as well, doing as Avery said and finishing her meal.

Later on in the evening, Melody climbed into bed, Avery standing over her to tuck her in.

"Goodnight, Melody. Sleep tight, and just know I'm only a room away. You are safe," she bent down, kissing the girl's forehead.

"Miss Avery?" Melody said with a yawn.

"Yes?"

"You are going to be a great mom. Jane is very lucky. I just wanted to tell you that," she told her. "Goodnight!"

Tears welled in Avery's eyes. "Thank you, Mel. That means so, so much to me. Goodnight," and with that, Avery Rose and went to bed.

* * *

Melody was awoken in the middle of the night as the doors were bombarded. She felt arms grab her, and she screamed, struggling to get free.

The Silence had hold of her, dragging her out to the living room where she saw Avery, Christopher, and baby Jane all being held.

"NO!" Melody screamed, staring at Madame Kovarian who held a sinister smile on her face.

"Did you really think you could escape us, you little twit?!" Kovarian hissed. "Stupid girl. I hope you've enjoyed playing house, because you've just murdered this little family of yours. KILL THEM," she gave the order.

Avery and Christopher began to thrash and scream as the alien crones incenerated them before Melody's eyes.

"NOOOO!" Melody screamed louder than she ever had, sobbing and thrashing in a furious rage. She managed to sling both of the men holding her, running up to Madame Kovarian with her fists held high. "I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! THEY WERE GOOD PEOPLE, YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO KILL THEM! WHY?! WHY ME?! WHY CAN'T YOU LEAVE ME ALONE!" she screamed, lunging for Kovarian's throat, but the men pulled her back quickly, holding her tighter.

"HUSH child, before you join them," Kovarian warned.

"Do it!" Melody sobbed. "Just do it!"

"Silence!" she hissed furiously. "You are coming with us."

"No! NO! NOOO!" she sobbed as the Silence carried her away.

"All-all they were doing was helping me find my parents. That's all I wanted! They were so kind to me! Why did you have to kill them?!"

Kovarian didn't respond.

Melody wriggled her nose, baring her teeth. "I'm not going to kill the Doctor."

There was a long silence. "You want to see mummy and daddy, now do you?" she said after a while.

Melody quieted, looking completely and utterly shattered. Kovarian smiled at this. "I can take you to them."

"W-why w-would y-you do that?" she asked brokenly, tears still streaming down her cheeks.

"I think it will be good for you," she responded fakely. "Maybe you won't run off. Besides," she turned to Melody with a mocking expression plastered onto her face, "I am so very, very kind. But one condition. You must kill the Doctor. If you refuse, I will assure you that you will never see your parents again."

"You promise?" Melody asked harshly. "You better promise me."

"Oh, I promise," Kovarian said in her most evil of tones.

Melody calmed, but continued to sob quietly in the back seat as she mourned the loss of the Cobbs.

They took her away, back to her normal room. Kovarian laughed wildly as she sat down. "We've studied her, and now we've broken her. The next phase is in motion-complete brainwashing."


End file.
